Low-temperature cooking device.



0. M. woLFF. y

LOW TEMPERATURE COOKING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FlLED JAN. 1, 1918.l

1,279,205, Patented sept. 17,1918.

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0 articles within OSCAR M. WOLFF, 0F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

LOW-TEMPERATURE COOKING DEVICE.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, OSCAR M. WOLEF, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Chicago, county of Cook, and

5 State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in LoW-Temperature Cooking Devices, of which the followin is av specification.

Ihe purpose of this invention is to provide an' effective apparatus for low-temperature cooking with the use of steam heat, but not involving any l needlessly complicated structure, while using the minimum amount of steam and producing an improved product.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view showing the device in vertical section, with the c osing door shown by broken lines; and Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail view of the temperature. controlling mechanism.

In general, the construction shown 1n the drawing comprises a properly insulated double wall cabinet with a water tank in the bottom thereof and a plurality of perforated shelves for *supporting the articles to be cooked. The water tank contains six or eight inches of water, and steam is permitted to escape in thewater through aperforated inlet pipe, the feed of the steam being automatically regulated by a thermostatically controlled valve, the thermostat being subject .to the temperature of the water. -The structure involves, in addition l5 tothis, merely a drain for the`water and a water inlet. The pipe 7 which supplies the water inlet has a branch conduit withi'n the upper en d `of the cooking cabinet, in order that water may be sprinkled upon the the cabinet, immediately after cooking, by means of this branch conduit, which is perforated for this purpose; Theobject of so sprinkling the articles being cooked is, in the case of meats such as hams, 54 to chill the meat in order to close the pores thereof and preventthe escape of fats and loss of flavor.

The object of ythe invention is tol overcome certain objectionable features in ex- 0 isting cooking apparatus of this general type, and particularly inthe matter of cooking meats such as hams. It is highly desirable to prevent 4shrinkage of the meat during the cooking operation and also toretain its naturaliavor.. This may be accomplished by slowly cooking the meatsin a Specification of Letters Patent.

net. The purpose Patented Sept.i17, 1918.

Application led January 7, 1918. Serial 19o-210,703.

moisture laden atmosphere at as low a teinperature as 150 F. In the cooking of hams, in order to insure their being cooked thoroughly from the outside to the center, 1t is' -necessary to cook them for thirty-five minutes to the pound. Thus, ordinary eightto ten-pound hams would be cooked within five to six hours. No warm water is allowed to trickle over the meat during the cooking operation, since it would carry away fats and the mineral matter in the meat. After the cooking operation, the meats are, however, suddenly water on them.

In the construction shown in the drawing, the cooking cabinet comprises a-pair of spaced surrounding walls/1 and 2, the space between the same being filled with insulating material 23 such as ground cork, which chilled by sprinkling' cold -isfrequently eniployed in theconstruction The door 3 of the cabinet is hinged thereto and has beveled edges in order to afford an air-tight closure. A tank 4 for water is located at the bottom o f the cabinet, and above the tank are a plurality of perforated shelves 5 resting on angle bars 6 secured to the side walls ofthe cabiof perforating the shelves 5 is to allow for the free circulation of the moisture laden air around the articles which of refrigerators.

are being cooked and which are at rest upon In order to facilitate good cir-v the shelves. culation, it is desirable to place but one layer of articles on each shelf.` The tank is filled withwater through the pipe 7 under the control of the valve 8. The waterl is heated to 160 F. in order to produce 150 F. in the cabinet above the water, the temperature'being indicated as usual by a thermometer25. The means for heating the water is a'perforated steam quired than if the water were heated by a coil through which the steam circulated but did not escapei'nto the water. By this arrangement, steam of any `desired temperature may be used to heat the water. The feedl 105 cross-bar 27. By .turning-the screw 26, the

-pipe 9 through which` steam is permitted to escape directly into the water, and accordingly, less' steam is re- 3b over the proper length of time,

5 ber 14, pointing to a division of the scale on the stationary plate 15. A flexible conduit v 16 connects the motor with a tube 17 which is closed at its end and contains a fluid which readily changes in volume under slight temi perature changes.

At the upper end of the device a sprinkler A18 extends around the inside of the cabinet. This sprinkler is under the control of a valve 19. The device is further provided with a pressure gage 20 and a safety valve 21.

."[nl the operation of the device, water does not come in contact with the articles being cooked until afterfthe cooking operation, although Water is employed to regulate the 20 temperature .of the air Within the cabinet,

since by this means the temperature may be accurately controlled through steam.

The water is permitted to flow into the tank 4 to the desired height before the door 3 is closed. After the articles have. been placed on the shelf 5 and the` door 3 is securely clamped in closed position, the shut- 0H valve 24 is opened and steam is permitted I y to enter the valve 12, its further ioW through this valve being automatically controlled by the expansion motor 10which is adjusted to the temperature at which it is desired to maintain the water in the tank 4.

After the cooking operation has extended that is, in the case of hams, thirty-live minutes to the pound per average ham, the shut-oit valve 24 is closed and the door 3 is thrown open and the valve 19 is opened, causing the ar- 0 ticles to be immediately drenched with cold water.

Cop-ien of this patent may lie-obtained for five cents each, 'by addressing the supplying water thereto, means by producing a Although but one this invention has been herein shown and described, it will be understood that numerous details of the construction shown may be altered or omitted Without departing from the spirit of this invention as defined by the following claims. y

I claim: 1."A cooking apparatus of the class described, comprising a container having heatinsulated walls, a support for articles to be cooked permitting the Jfree circulation therethrough of the air within the container, a tank located below said support, means for for injecting steam intothe water only in said tank, theremoisture laden atmosphere in the container, means for controlling the supply of steam to 4thereby control the temperature of the heated .water and for shutting oi the steam when it is desired to open the container, and means for sprinkling -Water upon the cooked articles while the container is closed to quickly chill said cooked articles.

2. A cooking apparatus of the class described, comprising a container having heatinsulated walls, a. support for articles to be cooked permitting the free circulation therethrough of the air within the container, a tank located below said support, means for supplying water thereto, means for injecting steam into the Water only in said tank, automatic means for controlling the steam supply to thereby control the temperature of the Water, and means or sprinkling w ater upon the cooked article s within the containerv to thereby quickly chill them.

Signed at Chicago this 3d day of January,

OSCAR M. WOLFF.

Commissioner of setenta Washington, D. G.

specific embodiment of 

